The generally accepted way of packaging wine for transportation is to provide an outer box, often of corrugated board, and internal partitions for separating the bottles from one another. In the simplest form the partitions comprise a number of vertical, transverse and longitudinal elements which intersect one another to form a plurality of vertically elongate compartments. A bottle stands in each compartment which is bounded either by four intersecting boards or by a number of boards and the inner surface of the carton.
In more complex packaging the bottles lie horizontally in moulded trays which are shaped to cradle the bottles and prevent movement. Examples of this type of packaging are disclosed in the following specifications:—
U.S. Pat. No. 6,820,743HurleyFrench Specification 2,155,005PapeteriesU.S. Pat. No. 7,237,675O'MalleyFrench Specification 1,205,747BlanchU.S. Pat. No. 1,967,026GrayU.S. Pat. No. 1,960,279ReadUK Specification 870,704Blanch
It is also known to provide the internal surfaces of the walls of a rigid box, for example of wood, with blind slots for receiving and supporting the free end of the neck and also the base of the bottle. An example of this type of packaging is found in French specification 2 967 401.
In the form described in French specification 1,268,153 (Cucurull) the carton has hard, internal, vertical partitions with semi-circular recesses in their top edges. There are smaller recesses for supporting the bottle necks and larger recesses for the main cylindrical parts of the bottles.
The partitions is covered by a corrugated, resilient sheet which initially extends across the upwardly open mouths of the recesses. When a bottle neck or base is inserted into a recess from above, the sheet is pressed into the recess by the bottle base or bottle neck so that it forms a cushion between the bottle and the partition.
Parts of the sheet lie against the sides of the partition and edge zones are secured to the base of the carton in which the partition is used. End tabs of the sheet are secured to the internal surfaces of opposed walls of the carton.
Much labour is required to cut the flexible corrugated sheet to shape, secure it to the hard partition and then secure it to the carton's base and walls.
The partition is fixed in the carton and no adjustment along the carton is possible after the sheet has been secured to the carton.
In French Specification 684094 there is disclosed a pre-formed support which defines a row of upwardly open recesses for receiving the necks of the bottles. In one disclosed form the support is sinusoidal in section so that upwardly facing and downwardly facing recesses are formed.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,341,308 discloses supports which have alternating large and small recesses in the upper edges thereof for receiving a row of bottles which are in reversed positions with respect to one another.
Specification GB 11,119 of 1898 discloses a packing case in which horizontally extending upper and lower partitions are provided for supporting bottles which are positioned vertically and upside down and pass through holes in the partitions. The holes of the lower partition each have a lining therein. Each lining comprises a sleeve in the hole in the partition and a flange which lies against the top face of the partition. The bottles are supported by the linings. The weight of each bottle presses the flange of the lining on which it bears against the top face of the partition.
The liquid in bottles which are vertical and inverted exerts a greater pressure on the bottle's seal than it does if the bottle is upright or is lying horizontally. The greater pressure that is exerted increases the possibility of leakage occurring.
To avoid this problem the case of specification 11119 could be used with the bottles horizontal. However, in such circumstances the vibrations and shocks to which the case is inevitably exposed could shake the lining out of the holes in the partitions as there is only one flange. This has the result that there can then be direct contact between the bottle and the hard partition should the case subsequently be subjected to shocks or impacts.
The present invention provided an improvement to the protective packaging disclosed in the specifications discussed and in particular an improvement in the packing case of UK specification 11,119.